[Homer_J_Simpson]

Free Republic University, Department of History presents World War II Plus 70 Years: Seminar and Discussion Forum
First session: September 1, 2009. Last date to add: September 2, 2015.
Reading assignment: New York Times articles delivered daily to students on the 70th anniversary of original publication date. (Previously posted articles can be found by searching on keyword “realtime” Or view Homer’s posting history .)
To add this class to or drop it from your schedule notify Admissions and Records (Attn: Homer_J_Simpson) by freepmail. Those on the Realtime +/- 70 Years ping list are automatically enrolled. Course description, prerequisites and tuition information is available at the bottom of Homer’s profile. Also visit our general discussion thread

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Selections from West Point Atlas for the Second World War
The Far East and the Pacific, 1941: The Battle of Midway, 3-6 June 1942 Southwest Russia, 1942: German Summer Offensive, Operations, 7 May-23 July 1942
North Africa, 1940: Rommel’s Second Offensive, 21 January-7 July 1942 India-Burma, 1942: Allied Lines of Communication, 1942-1943

[BroJoeK]

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June 5, 1942:

• "The SS reports that 97,000 persons have been "processed" in mobile gas vans.

• "During a roundup of Jews in Kraków, Poland, SS men brutally torment two men--one who has just one leg and another who had lost his eyesight while fighting for Germany in World War I."

"A long line of Jews winds its way through the streets of Pabianice, Poland, on the way to deportation.
In mid-May 1942 some 4,500 Jews from the town were rounded up and deported to Chelmno, where they were executed.
While the Jews of the town were sent to their deaths, the goods that they took with them to the death camp were sent back to warehouses in Pabianice."

"Bending over their shovels and spades, Hungarian Jews till the muddy Ukrainian soil.
Beginning in 1939, Hungarian Jews not serving in the military had been required to join labor battalions.
This cruel and backbreaking work took on new danger when Jewish units were ordered to the Eastern Front.
There they were mistreated by Axis military personnel and treated as the enemy when captured by the Soviets."

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[iowamark]

Poles fighting in the Red Army? That’s an awkward situation.

[PeterPrinciple]

I noticed the frequent use of “United Nations” this time, maybe never caught my attention before.

UN was officially formed in 1945.

[PeterPrinciple]

regarding the article about Budd manufacturing building cargo planes for the navy:

Aviation

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budd_Company

Budd BB-1 Pioneer in front of the Franklin Institute
In 1930, the company made its first foray into the aviation industry by signing contracts to manufacture aircraft wheels and stainless steel wing ribs. Enea Bossi joined the company as the head of stainless steel research to supervise the design and construction of the 4-seat biplane amphibian aircraft Budd BB-1 Pioneer. It was the first aircraft with a structure built out of stainless steel.[6] This was the first aircraft for the Budd Company, and it made its first flight in 1931.[7] Built under Restricted License NR749,[8] its design utilized concepts developed for the Savoia-Marchetti S-31 and was powered by a single 210 horsepower (160 kW) Kinner C-5 five-cylinder radial engine.[9]

The stainless steel construction process for the BB-1 was patented in 1942.[10] At the time, stainless steel was not considered practical; and only one BB-1 was built. It logged about 1,000 flying hours while touring the United States and Europe. In 1934, this plane was stripped of its fabric covering and its lower wing, and was mounted outside the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, where it remains to this day as the longest continuous display of any airplane.[8] The plane has been memorialized in the children’s book Spirited Philadelphia Adventure by Deirdre Cimino.[11][12]

During World War II, Budd designed and built the RB-1 transport airplane for the U.S. Navy using much stainless steel in place of aluminum. Only 25 were built but, after the war, 14 aircraft found their way to the fledgling Flying Tiger Line and provided a good start for that company.

[PeterPrinciple]

A little off topic but the Budd company was involved with wind turbines in 1939.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smith-Putnam_wind_turbine

[RedMonqey]

Homer_J_Simpson

I absolutely love these newspaper articles.

Especially since The(so called)History Channel has converted to “Reality TV” all the time.

I get to read history through the eyes of my grandparents...

Thank you very much, Homer

Red.

[Pharmboy]

Thanks for this. My cousin is buried in North Africa...he died fighting Rommel; my late brother-in-law survived the first wave assault on Omaha Beach and came home a hero Major after going through the Battle of the Bulge, capture and escape. It was hard to get him to talk, but occasionally he would open up to me.

Seeing these headlines and reading these stories brings it home in a very real way.